the smedley log - suburban scrawl

On being framed and what you can make with lemons

Here is where I briefly enlighten readers as to a couple more albums that have joined the fold. This time it’s The Frames and Glen Phillips on the docket. (Clicking on a CD image or title below will take you to a page where you can purchase that disc.)

The Frames: The Cost
I only looked these guys up on emusic.com because Mark practically nagged me about it (or maybe that inference was just some sort of Irish guilt on my part). Believe it or not, I didn’t realize there was more than one talented rock band to come out of Ireland. Or maybe I did, but I didn’t expect them to be this good. Once I got past the creepy similarity to Chris Martin’s bad falsetto that inhabits the first few lines of the album, The Cost was pretty much uniformly impressive to the last note.

First song to reach out and grab me: “True” (I think I have to blame this selection on the female backing vocals toward the end of the track, which I find almost whimsical)

The Frames’ website is here. Their MySpace page is here.

Glen Phillips: Mr. Lemons
During the same visit to emusic during which I picked up my first taste of The Frames, I also noticed Glen Phillips’ latest. Having been a longtime admirer of one of his previous obscure music efforts, I figured chances were better than not I’d find something to like in his latest outing. And I found a lot to like within Mr. Lemons’ confines, which weave from the grateful to the melancholy. Phillips even incorporates a new sound for a Huey Lewis cover.

I must also draw attention to the fact that he has a mostly dormant blog, where his “about” statement reads:

I am a singer/songwriter and father of three daughters. I had a brief moment of mainstream success as a young man which I am still in the process of recovering from. I love my family, friends, music. I think people are basically good but usually broken. I’m trying to learn how to make music for a living without it being at the expense of my family and community. I value simplicity. I create noise.

The last two sentences resonate with me for some strange reason. I don’t quite know why…

First song to reach out and grab me: “The Next Day”

Glen’s website is here. His MySpace page is here.

I don’t think its strange that those lines resonant with you. They vibrate nicely for me too. The idea of choosing ways of being that make your life less frenetic, while still making art/noise/a difference, is appealing.

It was probably also the dichotomy of those two statements, and how it feels like the way I am most of the time.